| aberration |
a deviation from what is considered normal or right; irregularity. |
| abysmal |
of vast extent; unmeasurable; extreme. |
| acclivity |
a rising slope. |
| aleatory |
pertaining to or depending on luck, chance, or contingency. |
| baneful |
causing or leading to death, destruction, or ruin; harmful or deadly. |
| cloture |
in U.S. parliamentary procedure, a method of ending debate and causing an immediate vote on the matter being discussed. |
| effete |
marked by excessive refinement or delicateness of taste. |
| figurehead |
a person whose title sounds important but who has no real power. |
| innocuous |
not capable of causing damage; harmless. |
| laureate |
one honored for achievement in a particular field or by a particular award, especially in the arts or sciences. |
| malingerer |
one who pretends to be ill or injured, especially in order to avoid work or duty. |
| oligarchy |
a government or state in which only a relatively few people or members of a family have real power. |
| profligate |
totally given over to immoral and shameful pursuits; dissolute. |
| reprobate |
an evil or lawless person, often beyond hope of redemption. |
| revetment |
a facing of stone, masonry, or the like to support or protect a wall, embankment, or mound of earth. |